A competition to design a monument paying tribute to the Spitfire Battle of
Britain fighter plane has attracted more than 200 entries.

A Spitfire balanced on a curved spike and an elliptical monument in the shape of a wing are among the entries to a competition to design a national memorial in honour of the aircraft.

More than 200 ideas were submitted in the contest, backed by The Sunday Telegraph, to create a giant tribute to the fighter in Southampton, the city where it was designed and first built.

Readers of this newspaper have also contributed more than £7,000 towards the project, which will see the winning entry added to the city's skyline as part of a waterfront development.

Other entries included a vertical 'mesh' replica of the fighter in the style of the Angle of the North sculpture, entitled Wings of the South; another featured a Spitfire held aloft by three columns coloured red, white and blue.

The submissions will now be reviewed by members of the Spitfire Tribute Foundation – the organisation behind the project – as well as a team of designers and engineers.

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A shortlist is expected to be announced in time for the 70th anniversary of the climax of the Battle of Britain, on September 15, with a winner revealed shortly afterwards.

Squadron Leader Alan Jones, director of the city's Solent Sky Museum and a member of the Foundation, said entrants ranged from "teenagers drawing ideas on the back of an envelope to professional designs" and came from "all corners of the country".

He added: "We are delighted with the response to our competition; we have been inundated with submissions.

"We have a huge task to review them all and select a shortlist, but a task that will be most rewarding. We look forward to sharing the final shortlist in due course.

"Our thanks go to all those people who have expressed their support for the campaign and submitted proposals."

All of the submissions will be put on public display in an exhibition at the museum, while the winner will see their concept built at a cost of up £2 million.

The foundation hopes the memorial will be completed by the end of next year, the 75th anniversary of the aircraft's test flight, which took place from what is now Southampton airport.

The single-engine fighter was designed in 1936 by RJ Mitchell at Southampton's Supermarine factory as the Air Ministry sought planes for the looming conflict with Germany.

So many RAF orders were placed that production was spread to additional sites including Castle Bromwich near Birmingham, but design remained in Southampton.

The south coast factory was destroyed during German air raids in September 1940, which killed about 100 people, many of them experienced workers.

Readers can still donate to the campaign by sending a cheque payable to The Spitfire Tribute Foundation to The Spitfire Tribute Fund, Telegraph Media Group, PO Box 609, London SW1W 0XN.

Please indicate if you wish your contribution to be made as a Gift Aid donation, adding your name, home address, signature and date. The charity is registered as Solent Sky, number 262995.